Men’s Basketball Gets Win over La Salle to Conclude Cathedral Classic

Jack Lawhorne – Student Reporter

Philadelphia, PA – The Merrimack Men’s Basketball team wrapped up the Cathedral Classic on Sunday with a 66–60 win over the La Salle Explorers.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

1st HALF

Ernest Shelton opened the scoring immediately, firing a three-pointer without hesitation through a foul.

La Salle answered with a two but Tye Dorset responded with a trey on MC’s second possession.

Dorset drained another triple to make it three straight scoring possessions to start for the Warriors, before Andres Marrero made it four by stealing the ball from his former team and converting a layup, forcing a La Salle timeout just 1:53 into the game.

Out of the timeout, Kevair Kennedy made it 14–4 with a rare three-ball of his own thanks to a Todd Brogna offensive rebound and Tye Dorset assist.

Merrimack slowed down a little bit after the hot start but still got offensive contributions — Kennedy got to the line, KC Ugwuakazi threw down a dunk, and Shelton hit another three, but La Salle put together a little 11–6 stretch, and at the 12 minute media timeout, MC still led but only by five (20–15).

Out of the break, each team traded twos and triples before Ugwuakazi made multiple big stops on defense, but La Salle took the lead with 8:33 to play in the first half with two threes.

After another TV timeout, Ugwuakazi continued to see extended minutes at center for the Warriors. He missed a shot close to the basket but made up for it seconds later when he stole the ball from the Explorers and got it to Tye Dorset who found a cutting Dylan Veillette for a finish.

With five minutes to go in the half, Dorset once again located Veillette for a backdoor layup before Dorset scored a floater of his own to regain the Merrimack lead.

La Salle took the advantage back with free throws, but Kevair Kennedy stole it again with a baseline drive and reverse finish.

Kennedy then extended the MC edge to three with a pick-pocket on defense that he took himself to the rack.

Andres Marrero found Todd Brogna on a cut for another MC basket, before Marrero hit a contested corner three to give the Warriors an eight-point lead.

From the four-minute to one-minute mark of the first half, the Warriors went on a 9–0 run.

At the end of the half, the Explorers did everything they could do to prevent Kevair Kennedy from getting a good look, and it led to Tye Dorset getting open and getting to the free throw line where he knocked down both, and Merrimack entered halftime up by six, 42–36.

Through one period, both teams shot the ball very well — MC shot 48% from the floor and 41% from three compared to La Salle’s better 60% and 50% marks. Where the Warriors really won the half was through the possession advantage. Merrimack turned over La Salle 10 times while only giving it away 4 times. This led to the Warriors shooting 33 field goals, crushing La Salle’s mark of just 20, and the Warriors got up 17 threes and made 7 in contrast to the Explorers’ 3–for–6.

At half, Merrimack Head Coach Joe Gallo emphasized rebounding and not giving up any more easy threes as areas for improvement headed into the second half.

2nd HALF

Out of the mid-way intermission, Ernest Shelton scored the first six points of the second for the Warriors with his fourth and fifth triples of the game, and at the 16-minute media timeout, MC led La Salle by four.

Todd Brogna drained a three to make it a seven-point game, and Kevair Kennedy made it nine with a pick-and-roll feed to KC Ugwuakazi.

The Explorers, though, ripped off an 8–0 run to trim the Merrimack lead all the way to just one.

The Warriors didn’t score for over three minutes until Dylan Veillette cashed in on a free throw, and buckets from Kennedy and Marrero along with great play on defense helped Merrimack re-up their lead to two-possessions.

La Salle would go scoreless for over four minutes, and with 6:26 to play, Ernest Shelton elevated the Warriors lead back to six with a smooth fadeaway.

With 3:38 remaining, KC Ugwuakazi kicked the ball out of the post to Kevair Kennedy, who blew by his defender and got vertical to finish a circus shot up and under multiple defenders.

Todd Brogna blocked an Explorer three-point attempt and Merrimack was unable to capitalize, but Kennedy got a steal on defense and got himself to the free throw line where he hit both to give MC a 9-point lead with under three minutes left.

The Warriors continued to defend strong, as Ugwuakazi blocked two shots in a row — and one being on a three-pointer.

Ugwuakazi then created an offensive rebound on the opposite end of the floor for an extra MC possession, and Kennedy took care of business at the foul line.

After controlling the game throughout, Merrimack finished the job, and exited the Palestra victorious by a score of 66—60.

TAKEAWAYS

Ernest Shelton was the player of the game for the Warriors, as he led the team in scoring with 17 points on 5–13 shooting from downtown. His shotmaking ability is invaluable to the success of this basketball team.

But this win was far from an individual effort.

Kevair Kennedy notched 16 points of his own and recorded 6 assists and 5 steals, while KC Ugwuakazi continued to impress, as he racked up 5 blocks and 2 steals.

Todd Brogna, Tye Dorset, and Andres Marrero were also crucial in the victory for the Warriors, and freshman Dylan Veillette’s impact was felt in this one as well.

WHAT’S NEXT

The Warriors (3–6) open conference play in the MAAC at home Thursday night Dec. 4 when they take on Rider at 7 pm ET. Then, they host Fairfield Sunday Dec. 7 at 1 pm ET. Both games will be played at Lawler Arena.